Maxo Vanka is ALIVE, and tech savvy
Maxo Vanka is ALIVE, and tech savvy
By Brian Crawford
People gather at Paint the town Maxo event in front of Gift to America 2.0: New Voices. New Ways. artwork.
133 years young, the painter known for his murals at Millvale’s Saint Nicholas Croatian Church, Maxo Vanka (May 11, 1889 – February 2, 1963) is alive and well in 2022. He’s also hip to 2022 tech. Though he’s shed his earthly body, his soul can be felt through new works of art and his voice heard through the murals on the church’s walls. The murals, whose messages ring as true today as they did 85 years ago, were created just before the start of Second World War. Turbulent times didn’t slow Mr. Vanka down in his endeavors; turbulent times hasn’t slowed down The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka (SPMMMV) either.
Two years of lock downs, restrictions, and countless other Covid-19 frustrations can be more than turbulent for a nonprofit, it can be a death blow. The SPMMMV however, used it as an opportunity for new growth. Featuring tech innovations, new art, mural restoration efforts and more, a celebration on May 19th showcased the work the group has done over the last two years, and they did it in style with live music, food, liquor and even tea from Abeille Voyante Tea Co. They created a party atmosphere at the event outside the church; all local products, all right in Millvale. It was the Society’s first large event in the covid era.
To keep people engaged and inspired during the last two years the society took Vanka to the people with high tech virtual reality and new art commissions inspired by Vanka’s work. Jim Ledoux, the man responsible for the VR, was at the party in a tent outside the church, the VR on hand. I decided to try it out. Goggles on, clicker in hand, I found myself in the church’s sanctuary…floating. Yes, I said floating, high above the church pews with the opportunity to see the murals from a different perspective than when observing them in person.
Ledoux used a special camera that captures the room in with image quality higher than 4k to create the effect. More than a fancy way to see the murals and pretend you’re *insert favorite generic super hero here* with the power to float, the 360 experience provides you with the opportunity to educate yourself. The clicker I mentioned allows you to select individual murals throughout the sanctuary. When you click the mural, it provides the name of the mural and information about it and society conservation efforts. The Society used funding from the Arts. Equity. Reimagined. Fund to create the 360 experience narrated by local actor Wali Jamal.
Keeping with the idea of bringing the murals out of the church and into the community, the society commissioned 4 artists to create new works inspired by Vanka’s murals. The project is called “Gift to America 2.0: New Voices. New Walls”. Their works were on display at the May event, “Paint the Town Vanka” and made possible with support from the Opportunity Fund and additional funding from The Pittsburgh Foundation.. SPMMMV executive directory Anna Doering said in address to party goers that Vanka was a student of other artists’ work and that he “would have been inspired by the work of the contemporary artists here today.”
Cue Perry in front of his work. Photo by Christopher Sprowls
Cue Perry was one of those artists. He and the other three were at the event to greet attendees. Before responding to an open artist call for the project, Mr. Perry didn’t know about Vanka or his murals. Perry told PGH Museums in a statement that he felt the murals were breath taking after seeing them for the first time, “in particular the injustice painting was bold and striking.” Perry’s project focused on motherhood and justice. He came to this decision after speaking with students at Amachi Pittsburgh, a nonprofit he partnered with.
Perry felt he and Vanka had some common traits in their work telling us, “These murals tell stories on top of stories about a time period and personally about Maxo Vanka, which I think is cool, and some of my art pieces have subliminal messaging also.”
Perhaps the biggest star of the night wasn’t the festivities outside but the Murals themselves. Every time you enter the sanctuary you experience something new. As the times change, as new stories are written, you can see stories from the past being retold in our daily lives. Those stories are currently being preserved with an ongoing conservation effort. Restoration of twelve murals have been completed as of spring 2020. Currently, Foulke Conservation Ace Conservators, a collaboration of mostly local art conservators, hired to complete the effort, are working in the sanctuary’s balcony. Onlookers at the party could see restoration work being done live while exploring the church and learning from SPMMMV staff and volunteers, dressed as the murals themselves. Even wipes with dirt carefully removed from the murals were available to inspect.
Greta takes pictures of murals in the sanctuary
One woman, Greta, was invited to the party by a friend presenting at the event. She had never heard of Vanka or the murals before. “I was like GAH, cause it’s awesome” and that she “couldn’t believe this existed and [I] didn’t know anything about it.” Greta was impressed that a church would have some of the concepts, she felt were presented, painted on sanctuary walls. She was wowed by the idea presented of “religion and war and what it means in a house of worship.”
When I found Greta, she was gawking at the sights with wonder, capturing memories to cherish on her phone.
It’s not all rosy for the SPMMMV, however. Years of restoration and conservation could be in jeopardy. A common problem with beautiful old churches, the roof ALWAYS ends up needing replaced. Saint Nicholas is no exception and roofs are not cheap. The Society estimates that the repairs needed to stop water infiltration into St. Nicholas a new roof will cost $350,000. dollars. They’re currently attempting to match a $100,000 dollar Keystone Preservation Construction Grant from the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission. Without these repairs, eventually the water-sensitive murals will be lost. Generating community support will be vital for the longevity of these one of a kind treasures. If you would like to contribute to the roof fund, you can do so at vankamurals.org/donate and then clicking the “Repair the roof. Save the murals.” button.
Gift to America 2.0: New Voices. New Walls. will be available to be seen at 216 North Avenue on Saturdays (11am – 3pm) in Millvale from June 11th though July 16th with an artists reception on the 7th from 5pm to 9pm. Tours to see the murals are available at St. Nicholas church on Saturdays at 11am and 12:30pm.
Maxo Vanka is alive and well. His voice can be heard through the murals in St. Nicholas church. His soul lives through the work of artists, telling new stories, with inspiration from his work.
